American journeyman Darron Stiles birdied his final hole to steal a one-shot lead after the second round of the Buick Championship at Cromwell, Connecticut on Friday.
Stiles, who has bounced between the PGA Tour and the minor Nationwide Tour since turning professional in 1995, fired a four-under-par 66 at the TPC at River Highlands.
That left him at eight-under 132 with Peter Lonard, bidding to become Australia's fifth winner on the PGA Tour this season, alone in second place after a 68.
Stewart Cink, the 1997 champion, shot a flawless 65 to lie a further stroke back in a share of third with fellow Americans Scott Verplank (69), Todd Fischer (68) and Notay Begay III (66).
One off the pace overnight after opening with a 66, Stiles offset a birdie at the 13th with a bogey-five on 18 to reach the turn in level-par 35.
The 33-year-old then stepped up a gear, reeling off three birdies in a row from the par-four first before holing out from 10 feet at the ninth to snatch the overall lead.
Chasing his first PGA Tour victory, Stiles believes he has learned from the experience of blowing a two-shot advantage after 36 holes at last month's St Jude Classic.
'I think in Memphis I got ahead of myself and my brain,' he told reporters of his eventual tie for 22nd at the St Jude.
Styles, who is playing his third season on the PGA Tour, added: 'Since then, I've realised that you really can't do that, especially out here. All it takes is one or two shots that you're not 100 percent focused on and your round is done.
'Going into tomorrow that's my key, to stay right there in the moment on that specific shot and not get too far ahead.'
Cink, who claimed the first of his four Tour victories at River Highlands in 1997, produced a flawless display at a venue where he has always felt comfortable.
'I have great memories from my first win, even though it was quite a while ago,' the Georgia-based professional told reporters.
He added: 'Just the fact that I've done good things in the past here; sometimes it's added up to a win, sometimes it's added up to not a win, but good finishes. I think that's where the comfort comes from.'
Giving himself plenty of scoring opportunities, Cink birdied the 12th, 13th and 15th after teeing off at the par-four 10th and picked up further shots at the second and third.
'I felt I was putting for birdie all day, made five and could have made more,' said the American, who has not been in the winner's circle since the 2004 WGC-NEC Invitational.
He added: 'The conditions couldn't be better for scoring. It's fun to play on days like this.'
The halfway cut fell at level-par 140 with 73 players qualifying for the weekend.
Among those missing out were defending champion Brad Faxon, Britain's Justin Rose, Paraguayan Carlos Franco and 2006 PGA Tour winners Tim Herron, Brett Wetterich and Aaron Baddeley of Australia.
